Antenatal Screening for HIV, Hepatitis B and Syphilis in a Tertiary Care Hospital

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and hepatitis are common vertically transmitted diseases. Pregnant women infected with Hepatitis B virus represent a major reservoir of the virus in the community. Transmission of HBV from carrier mothers to their babies can occur during the perinatal period, and appears to be the most important factor in determining the prevalence of infection in high endemicity areas, particularly in China and Southeast Asia. (Manisha Dwivedi et al, 2011) Before HBV vaccine was integrated into the routine immunization program, the proportion of babies that became HBV carriers was about 10% to 30% for mothers who were HBsAg positive but HBeAg negative. However, the frequency of perinatal infection was higher,i.e. 70% to 90%, when the mother was also HBeAg positive (Sevens CE, Xu Z,1979,1985). Passive immunoprophylaxis with hepatitis B ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 4 Number 12 (2015) pp. 318-322 http://www.ijcmas.com